There is no denying that the world as we know it is changing – rising sea levels, hotter temperatures, drier and equally wetter seasons are becoming the norm.

So far, warnings have been ignored by so many of us.

Now, a powerful new song, Eve of Destruction, released by Daily Maverick and sung by Anneli Kamfer, a performer from the Western Cape town of Swellendam, urges us to take climate crisis and the breaking down of the global social fibre seriously: 

Eve of Destruction was originally a protest song written by 19-year-old PF Sloan in 1965. Since then, several artists have recorded it, but the best-known recording was by Barry McGuire. The song referenced the social issues of the time, including the then still incoming Vietnam War, the US draft, the threat of nuclear war, the civil rights movement, turmoil in the Middle East and the American space programme.

This time, Daily Maverick editor Branko Brkic and journalist Tiara Walters adapted some of the lyrics to focus on the climate crisis. Scenes in the music video feature some of the biggest climate calamities – flooding, wildfires, droughts – to be experienced in recent times. They are a harbinger of the future that awaits humanity if no action is taken now.

Bernard Kotze – Anneli’s guitarist in their former jazz group Manouche, and now Daily Maverick’s multimedia head – produced, edited and directed the video. He co-produced the song, recording vocals in his Claremont apartment. Springbok Nude Girls guitarist Theo Crous and some of South Africa’s most celebrated musicians recorded new instrumentals at Theo’s Belville studios in Cape Town.

This stellar group includes harmonica whisperer Lonesome Dave Ferguson, guitarist Albert Frost, bassist Schalk Joubert and drummer Kevin Gibson. The song was mastered by the Grammy Award-winning Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering in Los Angeles.

“I identify as a plaaskind,” says Anneli, who was raised by a single mother. That description began its life as an intended Afrikaans insult by a university music teacher. But the 35-year-old solo artist recalls reowning it as a tribute to her Swellendam roots. 

“‘Yeah, I’m a plaaskind,’ I told my teacher. ‘We do things a bit differently than in the city, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing’.”

Also describing herself as a “vivacious big girl with an even bigger voice”, Anneli brings a similar frankness to her interpretation of the song – particularly as an artist from southern Africa, a drought-ridden hotspot warming at twice the global rate.

It was Kotze who roped in Anneli to the Eve of Destruction project. “The conversation about this song had been happening for a few years and, before I was approached to do it, I wouldn’t say I was the biggest climate change activist. But after doing some reading I was more informed and interested,” said Kamfer.

“The first time I heard the original song, I thought it was okay. When Bernard sent me the new lyrics, I immediately realised the importance of this,” says Anneli about an anthem from the continent that will likely be most disrupted by the climate crisis.

“Singing this opened my eyes to how real the situation is.

“Seeing the music video had me emotionally upside down because of the realness of it. I literally had to sit down and pull myself towards myself,” says Anneli. 

“My role with this song was to obviously sing, but it was also about showing people the situation and allowing them to think about what they can do to bring about change,” Anneli tells Daily Maverick.

The song is unlike those in her usual repertoire. She did vocal training for two years at Stellenbosch University, admitting she didn’t enjoy it because of the classical music element. But being there allowed her to perform with the university’s jazz band, the SU Jazz Band. 

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“Initially, I was intimidated because I’d never worked with a big band, but I loved working with them. That experience taught me so much about working with people,” says Kamfer. 

She later joined jazz band Manouche where she met Kotze. Kamfer speaks fondly of her seven years with the group. “Being with Manouche was more than a band to me, they really were like my family. The band broke up because everyone wanted to do their own thing.”

Her love for jazz musicians was evident when she named her microphone Auntie Ella after Ella Fitzgerald, the award-winning American jazz singer. “But Covid happened and it was rough, so I had to sell Ella,” says Kamfer. 

“I used to say I am a jazz musician, but now I just say I’m a musician. Tomorrow, I can wake up and do hip-hop, I just do whatever I want to do.” 

It’s evident in the 20Twenties: Eve of Destruction that Anneli isn’t confined by labels. “I would say the song is folk and maybe a bit of pop.” 

For her, “singing isn’t just about singing”, it’s a spiritual encounter as well. Her own journey with singing started at a church when she was 11. 

“I started singing by accident. Someone else was supposed to sing but they were too shy so I just started singing. People said they liked my voice and that they wanted to hear more of it,” she chuckles. 

After singing professionally for over 10 years, making music is her therapy. “I don’t know how to explain it, but when you listen to music, sometimes you don’t need to understand what someone is saying for it to make an impact.

“It doesn’t matter how terrible your day is, music is there to make you forget about it.”

Her musical inspiration includes jazz vocalist and trumpeter Mandisi Dyantyi, singer Adele and singer Karen Zoid, “who framed this industry”. 

“What also inspires me are my children, my wife, my supporters… but also a lot of other things – some days it can be an advert on TV.” 

Another great inspiration for Anneli is her “beautiful mother who allowed me to be whatever I wanted to be”. DM